


Ever After

by sidewinder



Category: Shanghai Noon (Movies)
Genre: Angst, M/M, Male-Female Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-17
Updated: 2012-01-17
Packaged: 2017-10-29 17:18:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/322257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sidewinder/pseuds/sidewinder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The trouble with fairy tales.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ever After

**Author's Note:**

> The following story is written entirely for fun and not for any profit. No attempt is made to supersede or infringe upon the copyrights held by any television or film companies upon which this story is based.

"So the Princess leaned in and kissed the frog, but as she did, he became a handsome prince, and they rode off to his kingdom where they lived..."

Chon Wang stopped, staring at the final words on the page. He'd read this story so many times, it was not that he had forgotten them-no, not at all, for he could in fact recite the entire book by heart.

But those last three words remained stuck in his throat, unwilling to pass over his tongue. They seemed to be taunting him with their false promise, a dream long held but revealed to be nothing but lies, fairy tale wishes that could never come true.

He heard anxious, stirring noises in the room around him. He looked up from the page and suddenly remembered his audience, a small embarrassed flush rising to his cheeks. The half-circle of young, innocent gazes pulled him back from the dark thoughts in his mind, forced the smile on his face as he summoned the words past the sour, bitter taste in his mouth.

"...happily ever after."

He closed the book, signaling the story's end. The children exhaled held breaths and then broke out in applause and cries of delight, followed shortly by pleas for another story. Wang accepted their gratitude graciously, as always, but begged them off, informing his audience with much regret that he had to be going, had to return them to their regular teacher for the rest of the afternoon. He was, after all, now the sheriff of Carson City-he always had a great deal to do in order to maintain the peace, to keep everyone safe and secure. So he bid them all good-bye and took his leave, stepping out of the makeshift school tent and into the cold winter air.

 _Happily ever after._

He tried to push the words out of his mind before they turned his mood completely sour. He had more important things to worry about than the promises of a silly fairy tale. The children, though, they should be able to believe in such things now, while they were young. Childhood was the only time for such romantic, heroic dreams, he knew now. When they grew older, they would soon enough discover the harsh realities of the world for themselves.

Before Wang's eyes, the railroad camp bustled with activity, the workers continuing their slow, dangerous progress northward into the mountains. This section of track was nearly finished. Soon it would be time for the camp to pick up and move on, another step further away from Carson City.

"Chon Wang."

Wang turned at the familiar voice calling his name. The former princess, now-at her insistence-simply Pei Pei, had apparently snuck out of the school tent immediately after he left. The coldness of the air brought an immediate redness to her pale cheeks, and she wrapped her arms around her slim body to hold away the chill.

Wang could recall a time when the sight of her face could leave him breathless, a time when he had dared to only steal glances at her beauty when he could be certain no one would catch him. That had been a time when he had still believed in fairy tales, in happily ever afters, he recalled clearly. That time was long passed.

"Thank you for stopping by. The children always love to see you," she told him. " _I_ am happy to see you, Chon Wang, it's been too long. Won't you stay for a meal?"

"Unfortunately I must turn you down. I have a long ride back to town. I'm sorry."

She nodded in understanding but insisted, "If you will not stay, then let me at least walk with you to your horse."

So they walked, her arm clasped gently in his own, talking quietly of little things: news from town, news in camp, any news from the homeland that they have both left behind. They spoke in Mandarin, something Wang relished. It was wonderful to have the chance to speak easily to someone in his native tongue, to not have to constantly struggle for the right English words, as he did every other day. Many people smiled at them as they passed, greeting Wang enthusiastically and wishing him well in the approaching New Year.

He could see how pleased people were to see the two of them. Together. The implication and hope in so many eyes was clear; it always had been. And that path would seem to be so obvious, for the respect and admiration they felt for each other was genuine, mutual, and more than enough to provide the foundation for a loving marriage.

But it was not meant to be, Wang knew, and Pei Pei knew it as well. He was committed to serving the people in his city, and she was equally committed to helping the people laboring on the railroad. He would not ask her to give up her life's cause to simply stay with him, not even as her work led her further away from Carson City with each passing day.

But even more than that, they both knew that there was someone standing between them, someone who always would, even if he was no longer there.

Inevitably, their conversation drifted to this delicate subject before she would let Wang go. "Have you heard anything from Roy?" she asked.

"No," Wang answered flatly, without even a sigh of longing or a frown of worry this time. He was past such things by now. He had not heard from Roy since that single letter upon his arrival in New York, a short missive to let Wang know he had made it safely. Not a single word in the months since then, nothing in far too long about the "chance of a lifetime investment opportunity" that Roy had gone on and on about before leaving, the one that "would only take a few days to secure" once he'd arrived in New York.

 _"I'll back on the train headin' home before anyone has the chance to miss me,"_ Roy had promised, sealing his words with a kiss. Wang had foolishly believed him. He'd believed in Roy enough to trust the former outlaw with their share of the Emperor's gold, and more than that, he had trusted Roy with his heart. He had believed he'd found his "happily ever after" with the reckless young cowboy and that they would forever be at each other's side. But now he knew better, and felt more the fool than he ever had in his life.

Fortunately they reached the stable where he had tied up his horse before Pei Pei could press the subject any further. He slipped away from her grasp and turned to her, saying, "Before I go, I have something to return to you. Something I have held onto for too long."

"What is that?"

He reached into the deep pocket in his jacket and pulled out the book, the one he had just read to the children. Its red leather cover had grown worn and beaten, the pages stained with dirt, smoke, and if he were honest, more than a few tears. He had brought it to her once before, and yet at the time she had insisted that he keep it. Now it was a weight he could no longer bear to carry. "This is yours, Pei Pei. You should read it to the children when they need hope, when they need to dream."

"And do you not need to dream yourself, Chon Wang?"

He shook his head. "I am past believing in such things."

"No, you are not. You are, however, an incredibly stubborn man." She took the book, and then kissed him gently on the cheek. "Stay safe, and next time do not stay away so long."

He nodded but would make her no promises. Mounting his horse and picking up the reigns, he waved her a solemn good-bye and headed out of the camp, beginning the long journey home.


End file.
